Gilligan meets a Dragon (Ginger's Viewpoint)
by Dabbled-at-Euchre
Summary: Most action scenes are Gilligan Centered. Thought I'd show an action episode from another perspective. Also show why only Ginger of all 7 castaways never has dreams that are included in the broadcasts. Set just after season 3. Multi chapter. Now complete.
1. Chapter 1

Part One-Day One.

Since the lagoon connected to the ocean the water was salty and undrinkable. Ginger came by carrying a bucket. "Fresh water here."

The Skipper and Gilligan were hard at work attaching an extension to the raft. (They'd already installed a mast and a sail.) They nodded at her and said their thanks. Politely Ginger ignored the extra lumber- most of it ruined by Gilligan's mistakes.

She turned to the Professor. "And the calculations?"

He replied "Still the same. Based on the weather data on the radio in two days from now a brief unseasonable lull in storms and boost to the current will make an ideal condition to take the raft out safely and float into the shipping lanes near Honolulu."

She replied "Back to work so soon? After over three years out of circulation? I'd better practice improv." She put some sultriness into her voice. "Maybe you can help me. I'll be by the new well this afternoon."

The man of science replied "I have some experiments to wrap up."

She didn't miss a beat. She tried to use mild jealousy to motivate him. "Maybe one of you sailors could help? You could pretend you're on leave and out to show a girl a good time?"

Gilligan said "After we add this extension to the raft I need to gather coconuts for the voyage. But I can do it after that."

The Professor nodded in a friendly fashion. Ginger walked off, moving her body just so. She hadn't given up on him joining her.

That afternoon she did a few improv scenes by herself. Then Gilligan ran in like a bat out of hell. He was carrying no coconuts and breathing like a drowning victim. As he stopped he gasped out "Ginger! Do you see it?"

Glad for an improv partner she scanned the horizon "What am I looking for?"

"A dragon!"

"A dragon?"

"Yeah. It jumped out and almost caught me but I got away."

"What color is it?"

"Kind of Grey. But with big scary teeth."

This was fun. She looked then pointed and whispered "There. I think it's hiding behind those trees."

"Run Ginger!"

They both yelled "Ahhhhh!" And ran about 400 yards (366 meters) to the area of the huts. Gilligan began talking excitedly "Skipper! A dragon almost ate me! I got away while it chased a bird!"

The other castaways (except Mary Ann) gathered around. In the background soft music played on the radio.

The Skipper said "What's that Gilligan?"

"There was this dragon. And it was big. And it charged at me with big teeth."

"A dragon? Don't be ridiculous Gilligan."

"I'm not. Ginger saw it too. She told me."

The Skipper turned to Ginger. "Ginger did you tell him you saw it too?"

Ginger replied "Well yes. But I thought we were doing improv."

Gilligan was still breathing hard as he turned to Ginger and said "Improv? I meant to ask this morning Ginger. What's improv?"

Ginger "Improvisation. It's a sort of acting practice. One of us thinks of something and we act it out."

"Oh I did that as a kid. We called it 'let's pretend.'"

"Gilligan improv is totally different. It's serious acting practice." She paused thought and continued in a slightly embarrassed voice "Done while playing let's pretend."

Mary Ann walked up carrying mushrooms she'd gathered. "Hi. Hey Skipper I found a ruined boat." She pointed "almost half hours walk that way. Maybe you and Gilligan can salvage the nails or something. Must have landed recently cause I was there last week and didn't see it."

The Skipper nodded "Thanks for that useful discovery Mary Ann." In a sarcastic tone he added "Gilligan here discovered a dragon."

Mary Ann smiled at Gilligan "Oh you are such a boy at heart. I suppose it breathed fire?"

Gilligan replied "No it didn't breath fire."

"Well was it 80 feet" [24.3 meters] "long with wings?"

"No it didn't have wings and was smaller. But big enough to eat me. Maybe it was a kid dragon. It came charging at me with a great big mouth and all these teeth and I ran and jumped in a tree and a bird was nearby so it turned and charged the bird but the bird flew away."

The radio announced "And in legal news today preliminary hearings were to be heard in the case of a shipping company who lost a 150 pound" [68 kilo] "Komodo dragon at sea. The animal was being shipped to the Honolulu zoo. An accident damaged the SS Mayberry's engines. The SS St. Claude from the same shipping company came to their aid. A decision was made to transfer the animal. As the weight of the cage and the animal was too much for the ship's derrick the animal was fed to induce a sluggish state and transferred to a ship's boat while the cage was transferred first. A sudden storm came up and the boat was lost. Nautical negligence or act of God?"

The Skipper gave his opinion "Act of God."

"No precedent will be set. A federal magistrate pointed out that both companies were subsidiaries of Howell Industries. Embarrassed attorneys asked for a continuance to settle the matter."

Mr. Howell looked horrified "I paid legal fees to sue myself! Oh the humanity!"

Mrs. Howell reached for him comfortingly and said "There, there dear."

The announcer continued "Animal lovers plan a candlelight vigil for this innocent victim of humans lost somewhere in the Pacific."

Mary Ann agreed. "That poor creature."

The other six all nodded. Then Gilligan remembered "Mary Ann. That poor creature tried to EAT me."

The Professor explained. "Gilligan a Komodo dragon is a dragon in name only. It's just a large carnivorous lizard."

Gilligan asked "What's carnivorous?"

"Meat eating."

"Meat Eating!"

Everyone began to look alarmed at the Professor's words. Even the Professor.

The Professor thought a second and said "Adult Komodo dragons specialize in eating deer."

Gilligan asked "How much can they eat?"

"Up to 80% of their body weight in one sitting."

Gilligan tried to do math on his fingers. Ginger saw him holding up two fingers on each hand and staring at them with a confused expression.

Mary Ann asked "So 120 pounds?" [54.4 kilos]

The Professor said "Correct."

Gilligan said "Oh our poor deer. The herds are in danger. "

The Skipper said "And has anyone seen any deer on this island?" Everyone shook their heads signaling "No."

The group looked at the Professor who said "In that case he'd try to scavenge any meaty carcasses it can smell or attack any other large animal. Although it's not common documented cases exist of them attacking adult humans."

Again the Professor's words were met with dismay. Even by the Professor.

Ginger had gotten used to the dangers of the island. Most prominent being that headhunters may turn up again at any time. But a 150 pound predator! Suddenly she felt nervous. She tried to control her breathing, a tactic she learned in the theater. (Strangely it worked a little. She was that much less nervous.)

The Skipper asked "So we could be attacked tonight?"

"We won't be attacked tonight." Everyone else looked relieved. The Professor explained "They rest at night and hunt in the daytime."


	2. Chapter 2-That Night

That night when Ginger went to bed she thought not of the big lizard but of about the "dragon" she'd pictured when Gilligan ran to her. Dragons of legend made for good movies. She started thinking of films with dragons in them even long after she'd heard Mary Ann start her nightly snoring. (Ignoring distractions was good acting practice.)

In the throne room was the king. Small in stature his face showed the cunning of the almost forty years he'd been outwitting his enemies.

Beside him was his queen, a charming grandmotherly lass. Near her sat their daughter, a glamourous red haired princess.

A young brunette lass who'd been a courtier since age 12 announced "The Royal Alchemist."

A scholarly fellow strode in. "Your majesties. Following clues in ancient manuscripts I have mixed Jasmine, arsenic, acid, certain mushrooms and cinnamon into an infallible dragon poison and scented it with lavender.

The Queen approved "Oh, lavender. What a marvelous touch."

The King asked "Why lavender?"

The Alchemist explained "To mask the scent so the dragon doesn't detect the poison."

Everyone nods.

The alchemist continued "Next problem. The delivery system."

When the king saw that the queen looked puzzled he explained "He means how to get the dragon to eat the poison."

The Queen said "Yes. That is a tricky one."

A bell rang. Princess Ginger walked over and waited for the dumbwaiter [a primitive elevator system] to be hauled up. Then she took a rolled up sheet of paper from it. She unrolled it and read aloud "The dragon has appeared at East Ham. He demands to fight our best champion or…" She paused then gulped and continued "to eat a princess of the realm. One or the other is due at dawn or the village will be destroyed with all inhabitants."

The King spoke "Send for my best knights."

The Queen said "But my dear they're all overseas at the war. They couldn't possibly get back till next week."

"Send for my wizards then."

"They're with the knights."

Princess Ginger stood up. She looked scared then resolved. In a voice of determination tinged with sadness she said "Very well. What must be must be."

The queen said "Princess Ginger Plantaganet you will do no such thing!"

The king added "I absolutely forbid it!"

Princess Ginger said "Even if you would trade my life for one whole village" she paused in a moment of weakness then continued "How would that solve anything? The dragon would still be out there. Alchemist is your poison in cloth bags?" When he nodded she continued. "Put it in a carriage with four fast horses. Put some leather belts in there as well." She turned to the courtier "We will get my late Aunt Cecile's underclothes from her wardrobe. Also her wedding dress. She wore a larger size then me so I can strap the poison to my skin underneath."

The courtier said "Highness let me go in your stead!"

Princess Ginger embraced her "Your zeal is touching. But dragons can sense royal blood."

At dawn Princess Ginger, clothed in an overly large white dress and veil got out of the carriage. It sped off. Ginger removed the veil and announced "Sir Dragon! I am Princess Ginger!"

She did not run when the enormous head approached her. Though her knees buckled and her right hand went up to shield her eyes. The dragon mouth opened and engulfed her.

"Cut!" The film's director, a white haired man who looked like he'd munched too many cold cuts between takes, appeared ecstatic "Ginger that was brilliant! And captured on camera too." He turned to look at his cameraman.

A young small fellow was on the ground with the camera on top of him. "I fell boss."

"Did you get the shot before you fell?"

"I don't know. I think so."

"You think so!" The director went over and hit the cameraman with his hat. "By the time we reset this dragon prop we'll have lost the dawn. It'll be daylight."

"Can we reshoot it in daylight?"

"And ruin the dawn motif I'm trying to establish through the film! Run that over to processing. We'll see what we've got."

Later a group of them gathered to watch the footage. (Even actors not in the scene wanted to see the special effect.) Turned out the shot wasn't ruined, the cameraman fell while the director was yelling "Cut!"

The actor who played the alchemist came over. "I feel lousy about losing you after only a week Ginger."

She shrugged. "I'll miss you Roy. But they shot my scenes first because Monday I move over to a key role in one of the company's other films."

"Oh. Millions of men, including me, look forward to seeing you in that."

The cameraman asked "So what movie is that going to be?"

"The Fullback's Big Sister."

"Oh. Who do you play?"

"The fullback's big sister."

"No I mean who do you play?"

She decided to cut through his confusion. "I play Linda. Her brother is on the football team. She's been looking out for him since their parents died."

The cameraman nodded.

Ginger continued "I'm too young to play a mother. But with the right make up and mature acting I can stretch to playing a 24, 25 year old woman. Even one who's her brother's guardian. Can you picture that?"

The camera man nodded. In the background five other people gave each other sarcastic looks while Ginger walked off humming a very inaccurate rendition of Notre Dame Fight song.

When Ginger woke up she told no one of her dreams. She never did. She had the dreams of a star. Why make the common folk feel bad that they didn't?


	3. Chapter 3-The 2nd Day

The castaways had an early breakfast. Then all seven of them took supplies and went to the top of the grassy hill. They sat at the top watching. Since the hill had no vegetation larger then grass they could see if any 150 pound lizards were coming up.

After a while it got sort of boring. The Skipper said "Gilligan we need to go to the Minnow and get the fresh water tank so we can have enough fresh water for all seven of us on the trip."

Gilligan said "We're all going? I didn't know we decided."

"We hadn't before. Now do you want to leave anyone with a Komodo dragon?"

"No. But to get the tank now we'd have to go out there and the dragon's out there! Not a good idea Skipper."

The Skipper pondered Gilligan's logic.

Then they saw some small birds fleeing out of the tree line. "Something's spooked them." Ginger said.

"Yes. Them too." Observed the Professor as he pointed. Two chimpanzees hurried into the clearing.

Mary Ann said "Gilligan. Is that your friend Gladys?"

Gilligan said "Yes. But we don't hang out much anymore. She and Howard are steady now." He pointed to the other chimp.

The Skipper said "Gilligan. That means the Komodo dragon is there." He pointed.

The Professor observed "Something more powerful than two chimpanzees chased them away."

The Skipper said "So now it's our chance to go the other direction to the Minnow and grab the fresh water tank."

Ginger had no trouble reading Gilligan's expression. He was thinking hard. But he couldn't find a flaw in the Skipper's reasoning. So he said "Okay. Let's go."

The two of them walked off.

The chimps reentered the tree line. Later Ginger again observed some small birds flying away and the chimps again rushed into the clearing. This time the chimps retreated farther. A gorilla came into view and checked under a log for insects.

Ginger had a thought. Then she began to worry. She asked "Unh Professor. Could that gorilla have scared off two chimpanzees?"

The Professor said "Yes."

Everyone's face sank as they had the same idea. The Professor said it first "But that makes the Komodo dragon's location unknown. It's the Heisenberg Uncertaintiy Principle all over again."

Mary Ann expressed it the way the others were thinking it. "Oh No! Poor Gilligan and the Skipper."

Ginger nodded while the Howells agreed.

Later the two sailors returned carrying the water tank. But in a subdued manner.

Gilligan explained in an excited and scared voice. "So the Skipper was unscrewing the water tank. Only the door was partially blocked with the Professor's geology samples. So I checked that the opening was wide enough to fit the tank. Only I opened it too far and it hit the Skipper's foot. Then he told me to help by gathering coconuts outside. So I get some down from the tree. Then I drop back to the ground. I pick up the biggest but my feet slip 'cause I was standing on tree roots. So I turn like this and I lose my grip on the coconut." Gilligan acted out his story looking like a drunk, exaggerated shot put competitor. "And I look to see where it went. And it bowled into this 10 foot dragon that was charging me. But he had to slow down because the coconut tripped him. So I run and yell 'Skipper!' Later we outrun it even lugging the water tank. Cause the tank was empty and dragon can't run for long. So we give him a wide berth and come back."

The Skipper looked unnerved himself.

Gilligan added "And it stuck out its' tongue at me. That's insulting. But I was too busy not getting eaten to get mad."

The Professor explained "They don't smell through their nose like we do. They use their tongue to detect smells."

Gilligan said "Oh. I don't feel insulted then."

It was boring up there the rest of the afternoon but no one complained.

Author's Note-Prior Appearances.

Island Gorillas- two in episode 1x22 "Diamonds are an Apes Best Friend". Also another gorilla or one of the same ones were in episode 3x20 "Our Vines Have Tender Apes"

Gladys the Chimpanzee- episode 2x02 "Beauty is as Beauty Does"

(Although chimpanzees are not native to the island, how Gladys got there is never explained in canon. My guess is that evil scientist Dr. Boris Balinkoff got a breeding pair from an unethical source and seeded the castaways' island in case he wanted chimps for future experiments. The gorillas being there can be explained similarly.)


	4. Chapter 4-The 3rd Day and Epilogue

The next day the castaways met at breakfast.

The Skipper observed "This afternoon is the escape opportunity the Professor calculated."

The Professor said "The Komodo dragon is probably near where he was seen last."

Mr. Howell said what they were all thinking "Probably?"

A plan was proposed. The Howells would observe on the hill. (Partly due to Mr. Howell's cowardice-partly due to how little carrying power they had.) The others would gather fruit as supplies for the trip. Except Gilligan who would catch some fish instead. The Skipper reminded Gilligan there was a spot he could fish from in a clearing so the Komodo dragon couldn't sneak up on him.

Gilligan said "But Skipper. I need all my concentration to fish. How am I supposed to watch for the dragon as well?"

The Professor had a brainstorm. We'll all watch for him." He handed out seven Conch shells. "One blow is danger! Two is meet at the huts. Three is meet on lookout hill." [The grassy hill was being renamed from picnic hill. And they all knew what he meant even Gilligan. That's the way language evolves.] So they all practiced blowing for a few minutes. Then got to work.

Later Ginger heard a loud blow. She and Mary Ann put down the coconuts and bananas they were gathering and hastily climbed trees.

They saw the Komodo dragon. He walked past their tree like a lizard on a mission. Looked straight ahead and didn't stop for anything. His tongue flicking ahead of it.

Once it was safely passed them they got down from the tree and followed a safe distance behind. Gilligan suddenly appeared walking toward them. Then he saw the lizard and ran to the left. The lizard ignored him, headed in a straight line.

Gilligan said "You should have blown three times for danger!"

Ginger said "Gilligan. One is danger."

Gilligan said "No Ginger. One is meet on the hill."

His voice trailed off as he saw Mary Ann agreed with Ginger.

Then he said "The signal was danger and I just went to it!" He jumped in a tree. Although the lizard was out of sight he stayed there for a minute.

The Skipper and the Professor came up. The Skipper said "Gilligan why is the dragon going straight in the direction of where you were?"

Gilligan said "I don't know Skipper. I was catching fish like you said. I cut some into strips and set them out to dry them so we'd have dry fish for after the first day of the trip."

The Skipper asked "And where did you set them to dry them Gilligan."

Gilligan said "On the raft so we wouldn't have to go back for them. Some birds circled but I put the extra lumber on top so the birds couldn't get them."

The Skipper said "How much did you catch Gilligan?"

Gilligan said "I was having a great fishing day. Almost as good as the first day I fished here. Must have been sixty pounds." [27 kilos.]

The Professor said "These lizards prefer to scavenge then to kill. If it sensed sixty pounds of carrion it would head in that direction."

Gilligan said "What's carrion?"

The Professor said "Dead animals."

They got close to the beach. As the tide was in, the raft was on the shore. The Komodo dragon lay on the raft. There was no sign of the 60 pounds of dead fish.

The Professor said "Having eaten he would prefer to rest."

Ginger saw her return to Hollywood fading. She said "But we need the raft!"

Gilligan said "Tell him that."

They all stood silently for a minute.

The Skipper broke the silence first. "Good idea Gilligan."

Gilligan said "My idea? What did I say?"

The Skipper said "You get the Howells. Tell them the creature is napping and we know where it is. The rest of us will move our fruit piles to the beach."

Later they were all on the beach with the fruit piles and the water tank (now filled.)

The Skipper spoke "Two choices present themselves. We can stay on the island with this predator and try not to get eaten. Hopefully we live out our natural lives."

There seemed a lack of enthusiasm. So he went on to his next idea. "Professor, it's true that Komodo Island has been inhabited by men for hundreds of years."

The Professor agreed "The lizards eat so few of the people that natives have been there for centuries without going extinct."

"And once he ate he'll want to rest."

"The blood will be in his digestive system. He will be sluggish."

The Skipper passed out long sticks. "We go in yelling. We poke it with these sticks. There are seven of us. We don't corner it. We let it retreat that way. He pointed. "Then we load the raft and get off the island. Mr. Howell can send an expedition to retrieve the dragon for a zoo. And our luggage."

(Ginger gave Skipper's word choice an A+. He'd used the fear of his audience to persuade them TO do a dangerous thing. She gave his delivery an A-. There was just something amateur about it.)

"Retrieve the dragon. How much would that cost?" Mr. Howell began to calculate.

Ginger said "Mr. Howell. Think of the publicity."

"Eh. You're right. I'll do it."

They trooped down to the beach. The raft was off in the water. "The tide must have gone out." Said Gilligan.

The Skipper said "Thank you Gilligan. Now everyone grab this line." He picked up a rope made from vines. They all grabbed. "Now Gilligan go out there and tie it to the anchor so we can pull it ashore."

"Why me."

"Because you're lighter. We need my bulk to help pull it."

[The Chivalry of old fashioned sexism. Neither remembered that Mary Ann was also a lightweight.]

Gilligan said "Yes you have the- "Ginger saw that Gilligan's expression changed as the Skipper got mad. Then Gilligan finished "power for pulling it."

So Gilligan took off his hat, shoes and socks then waded out to the bobber that marked the anchor. And he tried tying onto the anchor. And he dropped it. "Ow! My foot. I think I'm bleeding."

"Never mind that now Gilligan. Tie the line on."

"Got it."

The Professor was deep in thought. Ginger suddenly asked "What are you thinking?"

"I calculated how fast that anchor would drop in the medium of water. He really should have time to move his foot out of the way."

Gilligan said "I got it tied on Skipper."

The Skipper said "Okay everyone heave."

They pulled the line up the beach. The Skipper asked "Gilligan why is the raft farther out?"

Gilligan said "The raft is farther out because the other rope slid off the anchor as I tied this one on."

The Skipper said "Well tie onto the raft. We need it."

Gilligan swam out carrying the anchor. The Skipper said "No Gilligan. Untie from the anchor."

So he untied then dropped the anchor. "Ow! My other foot! Now that's bleeding."

"Not now Gilligan."

He swam to the raft. And looked eye to eye with the Komodo dragon. "Arrggghhh!" So he swam around then approached from the other side.

Ginger said "Is that fin what I think it is?"

The Professor yelled "Gilligan! Watch out for that Galeocerdo Cuvier!"

Gilligan said "The what?"

The Professor said softly "Common names. Use common names." Then he yelled "The Tiger Shark!"

Sometimes Ginger thought of Gilligan as a real life character from the old movie serials. Far more than the other castaways he was always getting into and out of danger.

The Skipper noticed the fin. "Shark Gilligan!"

Gilligan yelled "Shark!" He began to swim much faster. Ginger wondered if the zig zag course he was adopting threw the shark off the trail. Then Gilligan got out of the water and ran onto the beach.

They all stood and watched.

Later the Skipper said "Well we did a good job with the sail we rigged. It must be making three knots easy."

The Professor said. "Yes. And the Galeocerdo Cuvier is still following the raft. Maybe it hopes to devour the reptile."

The Skipper said "We'll never build another raft before the tide comes in. We're stuck on this island."

Mr. Howell said "On the bright side that overgrown lizard is stuck out there."

Mrs. Howell agreed "How could we have a bridge party if we were worried that North would eat one of the other players."

The Professor said "Komodo dragons don't play bridge."

Mr. Howell said "Still it would be quite a faux pass."

Mrs. Howell said "The worst faux pass I ever saw was when the Van Clydes were caught passing signals."

Mr. Howell said "What a disgrace. To get caught like that! And I thought Mortimer and Clarice were sneaky!"

And the raft drifted farther and farther.

A couple nights later Gilligan had gone off after dinner. The rest of them were sitting around the table listening to the radio give news from home.

"The Coast Guard has made an unusual save. They found the missing Komodo dragon and carefully towed his raft to a deserted beach where zoo officials with special equipment took him into custody. The animal has been well fed and somehow traded the ship's boat he was on for a raft. How? It's a mystery and none of our reporters have volunteered to go in his cage and interview him."

The Skipper said, sarcastically "Oh it's a real mystery."

Ginger sighed wondering how much longer her career would be on hiatus. Then asked "So everyone can safely get off this island EXCEPT us? Even the lion who was here and now that big meat eating lizard."

Just then Gilligan's voice was heard "Here Tiger."

"Tiger!" said Mr. Howell alarmed.

Gilligan was heard again "Easy girl. Come this way."

Mr. Howell grabbed his wife's hand and tried to lead her away. The Professor pointed out "No Mr. Howell. Tigers can sense fear. We all stay together."

Ginger thought it was too bad there was no Olympic event in rapid fire rebuilding. Mary Ann would have a gold medal performance for how rapidly she was growing from the dying embers of the cooking fire into a nice blaze. (Ginger was scared-then began to pretend she was in a movie. She went to the woodpile and grabbed the two longest sticks she could find.)

Gilligan said encouragingly "That's it Tiger. Right over here."

The Skipper yelled "Gilligan! Why are you bringing Tiger here?"

"To show her where we live."

The Skipper tried to shout that was a bad idea. Ginger handed him and the Professor each a long stick. They each thrust one end in the fire to light it. The other four moved behind them.

Gilligan came into view "Here Tiger." He cried. They watched hyper alert. Seconds later an 8 pound (3.6 kilo) Siamese kitty cat with a collar on came into view. "Good Tiger. Now don't be shy. Meet all my friends."

All were shocked speechless. Then Ginger, who was trained in improv, recovered enough to ask "That's Tiger?!"

"Yeah. It says here on her collar. I guess she fell overboard from a boat. Can we keep her?"

(Do all eight of them live together happily? Or dose Tiger get back to civilization and never send a rescue party for the others? Tune in next episode and see that it's written as if Tiger never existed.)

The End

A/N Precedents and prior Appearances

The Lion Ginger mentioned-episode 2x24 "Feed the Kitty"

The Professor recycled his idea of blowing conch shells from episode 1x01 "Two On A Raft"

All the fish Gilligan caught the first day he fished on the Island-episode 1x12 "Birds Gotta Fly, Fish Gotta Talk"


End file.
